Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Singapore

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $3,454 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $26,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
168

Cost of Living Index in Singapore
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Singapore Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,454

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Singapore

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Singapore actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,454 in Singapore, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Singapore $3,454

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $5,224 in Singapore, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Singapore $5,224

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $6,994 in Singapore, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Singapore $6,994

Playa del Carmen is about 65% cheaper than Singapore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 9% below the global median, while Singapore is 158% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$200

$11.53 SGD 14.77

-4.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$816

$71.2 SGD 91.2

-37.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$217

$8.76 SGD 11.22

36.07%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.2

$5.25 SGD 6.73

-27.62%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$23.86

$1.83 SGD 2.34

-28.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.58

$1.25 SGD 1.60

-31.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$58.4

$8.42 SGD 10.79

-61.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$91.2

$10.02 SGD 12.83

-50.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.53

$2.94 SGD 3.76

-50.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.33

$2.47 SGD 3.16

-5.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.24

$2.71 SGD 3.47

-46.86%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$44.78

$3.73 SGD 4.77

-34.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$140

$21.54 SGD 27.58

-64.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$144

$9.52 SGD 12.20

-17.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$233

$25.98 SGD 33.27

-50.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.1

$4.48 SGD 5.74

-34.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$25.87

$3.11 SGD 3.99

-54.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$46.66

$4.62 SGD 5.92

-44.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$38.88

$2.23 SGD 2.86

-4.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.42

$2.50 SGD 3.20

-22.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.22

$2.38 SGD 3.05

-18.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$20.94

$1.78 SGD 2.28

-35.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.21

$1.51 SGD 1.93

-19.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$79.6

$14.18 SGD 18.16

-69.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$179

$23.79 SGD 30.47

-58.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$27.97

$4.51 SGD 5.78

-65.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.40

$4.57 SGD 5.86

-40.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.55

$1.58 SGD 2.03

-67.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$499

$96.4 SGD 123

-71.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$89.4

$3.63 SGD 4.65

35.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.1

$0.80 SGD 1.02

340.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$103

$16.18 SGD 20.72

-64.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.01

$2.51 SGD 3.21

-38.65%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.2K MX$386.3K

$155.9K SGD 199.6K

-86.37%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$24.5K MX$445.4K

$145.8K SGD 186.7K

-83.20%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$83.6 MX$1,521

$175 SGD 224

-52.23%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$24.03 MX$437

$12.45 SGD 15.94

93.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$534

$26.64 SGD 34.11

10.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,180

$112 SGD 143

-41.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$536

$12.07 SGD 15.46

144.08%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$92.5

$11.60 SGD 14.85

-56.12%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$208 MX$3,778

$1,463 SGD 1,874

-85.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$73.6K

$28.4K SGD 36.3K

-85.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$810

$81.5 SGD 104

-45.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$765

$50.6 SGD 64.8

-16.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,374

$112 SGD 143

-32.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,662

$130 SGD 166

-29.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$17.9K

$2,916 SGD 3,734

-66.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,007

$2,128 SGD 2,725

-81.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.2K

$5,654 SGD 7,241

-69.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.2K

$3,968 SGD 5,081

-72.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.0K

$23.6K SGD 30.2K

-82.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$113.6K

$16.8K SGD 21.5K

-62.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.8K

$4,369 SGD 5,594

-82.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.44

369.26%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Singapore: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Singapore

$2.1K 61.4% 452% $1.7K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Singapore

$457 13.2% 75.7% $197

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Singapore

$256 7.4% 25.5% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Singapore

$214 6.2% 56.3% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Singapore

$168 4.9% 47.3% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Singapore

$135 3.9% 79.6% $60

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Singapore

$110 3.2% 112% $58

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,916 in Singapore. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 476% higher in Singapore, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $71.0 in Singapore. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $457 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇬 Singapore

🕒 Local time

03:54 3:54 AM

16:54 4:54 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

5,535,002 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Singapore Dollar SGD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

1 SGD = 0.781 USD

1 SGD = 0.696 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SGD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

Singapore Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 SGD (1 SGD = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.44 SGD (1 SGD = 0.696 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Singapore 17,300 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Singapore

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Playa del Carmen vs Singapore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Singapore is pricier by about 184%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $5,180 in Singapore. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,215 in Playa del Carmen and $3,454 in Singapore. That's a gap of about 184%.

Public transport costs about 251% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,215, than in Singapore at $3,454. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Singapore it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Singapore makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.